Micro-Mobility and Electric Scooters

If you are tired of wasting valuable time while sitting in traffic and you are looking for a new solution to commute faster, you should check some of the best scooter brands. Using an electric scooter as a micro-mobility vehicle is a convenient option since it will reduce traffic, it’s easy to drive, and you don’t have to buy one since you can rent one using a mobile app.

Micro-mobility’s purpose

Even though micro-mobility developed a lot in the last few years, many people didn’t hear of it. The goal of micro-mobility is to solve the last/first mile problem by joining up the forms of transport so the trip is completed as fast as possible. 

Not everyone lives within walking distance from their office or school so the cities often have traffic jams, not enough parking spaces, and excessive pipe fumes. Local authorities are aware of the fact that they can’t simply add more and more bus routes or traffic lanes as it might cost too much or it may lead to other unwanted results. 

The micro-mobility solution might be the best fit for big cities with slow traffic and overcrowded streets. Even if these cities have a good public transportation system, people will choose to use their cars to avoid walking from the bus or subway station to their office.

Micro-mobility essentials

Micro-mobility is about vehicles that can be used by one or two persons for short trips. One of the most known examples are bicycles but there are other suitable vehicles for micro-mobility such as small electric cars, e-scooters, or electric bikes. 

In some big cities such as San Francisco or New York, there is no need to buy a micro-mobility vehicle. As the popularity of this transportation form has increased over the last few years, several companies came up with a business plan that allows people to rent electric scooters. Clients can use an app to find the closest available vehicle, unlock it, and pay for the service.

In some cities, electric scooters can’t be parked on public spaces overnight so company workers must pick them up every evening even if some scooters don’t need to be recharged. After recharging the scooters’ batteries, they return them to the same places the next morning.

Growing popularity

Investors are flooding this market’s segment as reports show more than $5 billion were invested in start-up firms since 2015. The spreading popularity is caused by conducive environments in big cities where people want to move around freely while using a cheap and low-impact option. 

So not having to worry about finding a parking space or wasting time in traffic jams made more and more people use the micro-mobility firms’ services. However, the number of people using the micro-mobility option should get bigger in order to create a visible impact on the city’s traffic.

How micro-mobility can reduce traffic

The micro-mobility option can complete the gaps between public transportation for people commuting on a daily basis. This idea can reduce the number of cars on the streets by making mass transit more efficient so more people will prefer it instead of taking their cars. 

But it’s still a young concept so there are still issues about safety and even user behavior to be solved. Nevertheless, valuable lessons could be learned from more experienced cities so local authorities together with the micro-mobility firms can come up with the best solution. 

How can micro-mobility improve?

There are some obstacles that you might face when moving around the city as a daily commuter. Micro-mobility vehicles such as e-bikes or e-scooters should not ride on the sidewalk among pedestrians or in the streets. 

This is because they might create a dangerous situation for pedestrians or drivers in areas without lanes destined for bikes. Furthermore, there are not enough spaces designed for scooter parking and charging. So the local authorities together with the city planners should concentrate on increasing the number of bike lanes and charging stations for electrical vehicles used for micro-mobility.

Should commuters use electric scooters?

Electric scooters might be one of the best solutions for daily commuters. Driving an e-scooter is effortless, doesn’t require a high level of skills, and you can easily move through traffic. Also, there is no need to search for a parking space since most of the e-scooters can be folded. 

So when arriving at your destination, you can take it with you inside the office’s building without a lot of struggle since most e-scooters weigh around 20-26 pounds. If you don’t own an electric scooter, you will have to search for a good place to park it so you don’t block the sidewalk.

Could electric scooters replace cars?

Almost half of the cars present on US streets are used for trips shorter than five miles and a quarter of them are driven for less than a mile. Nevertheless, the number of trips made by riding a bike or walking has decreased over the last two decades.

Data provided by INRIX showed the average US commuter spent about 42 hours in traffic jams in 2014. So using a car for such short distances becomes almost pointless so people have started to look for another way to move around the city. 

Furthermore, an electric scooter is way more efficient than a regular car. Using one kilowatt-hour as a source of energy, an e-scooter can travel up to 85 miles. A modern electric car can travel approximately four miles and a regular car with an internal combustion engine will travel for less than a mile on the same amount of energy. 

With the introduction of low emission zones, the rising popularity of vehicle sharing systems and the expanding of bike lanes, the micro-mobility solution could take over the modern day city.

Is the micro-mobility solution necessary?

Some city residents might not be fans of this new upcoming form of transportation as there have been problems related to micro-mobility. But most will agree it’s a workable option to reduce traffic jams, especially at rush hours so there is some excitement around the idea. 

The main questions are the e-scooters’ level of safety and if the cities’ infrastructure can manage the invasion of these vehicles. So there are two major concerns for city planners to focus on: how to keep the scooter riders from parking in improper places and how the bike lanes should be modified. 

The new bike lanes should keep safe the scooter riders, the bike riders and leave enough space for pedestrians. Some of the micro-mobility firms are working with local authorities to prevent these problems. 

For example, the app will alert you when riding in an unsafe area and you can park the e-scooter only in designated places. Furthermore, clients should be over 18 years old and a valid driver’s license is required before they can rent an e-scooter.

Is everybody a fan?

In several cities, docked bikes or e-bikes are some of the most popular solutions for the last mile problem. Nevertheless, if you visit San Diego, you will see a lot of people trying to get an e-scooter before thinking about renting an electric bike. Reports show that almost 30% of micro-mobility users selected an electric scooter to replace the car ride on their last trip showing the positive effect micro-mobility options can have on decreasing the traffic congestions.

Electric scooter’s safety

The ER rooms have witnessed an increasing number of victims of e-scooter accidents as their popularity increased. However, most of these accidents were caused by the rider’s neglect or lack of attention. Reports showed accidents caused by multi-riders on one electric scooter or riders using the phone while driving through traffic or on sidewalks. 

To prevent future accidents, e-scooter manufacturers have safety-related materials on their site and a safety tutorial is provided when clients sign up for each app. Also, safety tips are clearly written on each electric scooter available for customers.

Probably, the number of accidents will decrease over time as customers get more familiar with driving an electric scooter and other traffic participants become more aware of the e-scooter’s presence on the public roads.

Vandalism as one of the problems

Placing a great number of small, light vehicles such as electric scooters around big cities favorized acts of vandalism or theft. So micro-mobility companies had to come up with a solution to this problem to offer a great product to their customers. 

This has been mostly resolved with inventive surveillance efforts and anticipating where problems are most likely to occur. To completely combat this issue, companies are investing in security upgrades such as remote monitors, GPS systems, and better locking devices.